Of Capitals and Columnists
by M. E. Cullen
Summary: When Bella moves from Seattle to Philadelphia, she hopes it is a chance at a new start. A certain right wing for the Washington DC Capitals is going to make sure it's a happy one. AH E/B


**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters referenced in Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series. But what plot there is came from my head.**

**I have been reading fan fiction for almost ten years but this is my first attempt at my own. It was supposed to be a one-shot, but the plot got away from me a bit and it would be way too long now for one chapter. That being said, I would love any constructive criticism or comments that you can offer!**

**The posting schedule of this story might be a tad sporadic, being my first fic, but I will finish it, cross my heart. **

As I stepped into Philadelphia International Airport, I breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, I could put this whole business behind me and start over. I made my way through the terminal to the baggage claim, but I was stopped before I could collect my suitcase.

"Swan!"

I whipped my head around to see who was yelling my name and I could see a tall man with dark hair waving his arms over his head. I ran towards him and he caught me and swung me around in a circle.

"Jake! God, you have no idea how good it is to see you."

He set me down and wrapped an arm around me. "Don't worry Bella, I've got you now."

I smiled at him and together we walked out of the airport into the sunshine of the Philadelphia summer.

"Bella! Don't lean too far over or you will be plummeting 100 feet to your death!"

I laughed, but leaned back from the edge of the rooftop. Trust Jake to make his 4th floor walk up sound like a 10th story penthouse. But I was notoriously clumsy, so I guess his warning was appropriate.

The best feature about Jake's apartment, well our apartment now, was the rooftop "garden". In reality it was just a couple of potted plants and strings of white Christmas lights, but it made the perfect spot for a party. Said party was currently in full swing and that's why I had been sitting by the edge of the roof out of the way. I had made the mistake of wearing a light colored top and red wine and light colors did not get along very well around me.

"Thanks for looking out for me, Dad" I laughed as I joined Jake in a circle of people. Most of them were his friends from work or various people he had met on photo shoots, but he made an effort to introduce me to everyone.

"Guys, this is Bella," Jake said and I waved. He was always the more outgoing of the two of us. I smiled at the short, dark-haired girl who looked familiar.

"You're Alice, right? I think I met you the last time, Labor Day?"

Alice nodded and introduced me to her brother Emmett who was so tall I had to tilt my head back to look at him.

"Hey Bella, nice to finally meet the childhood friend Jake talks so much about."

I frowned. "He's been telling stories, hasn't he. Do you work together?"

Emmett told me he and Jake had been on some photo shoots together when they needed multiple photographers and had recently been on a trip to DC to get some pictures of the national monuments.

I smiled at him. "Now I am jealous, Emmett. I have always wanted to go to DC and Jake never wants to take me!"

Jake spluttered and tried to interject that he had offered several times, but Emmett was already off on what a terrible traveling partner Jake was, always falling asleep in the car. Alice finally interrupted, taking my arm and steering me towards the drinks.

"Sorry," she breathed, reaching for a bottle of chardonnay. "Once you get Emmett going there's no stopping him and I needed a refill."

I nodded and topped off my own before turning to scan the groups on the rooftop.

"Do you know all these people?" Alice asked, turning to look with me.

I shook my head and laughed. "These are mostly Jake's friends and people that live in the building. He figures if we invite them they won't make any noise complaints later in the night." I pointed out little Mrs. Jefferson with the five cats that lived in the apartment across the hall.

"I honestly don't know where Jake meets all these people."

"Well having just met him, I can see he makes people feel pretty welcome," Alice laughed.

"Jeez, here I thought you had known his as long as Emmett," I sighed and shook my head. Hopeless.

"Oh no, I am here strictly as Emmett's chaperone."

We started talking about work and I found out that Alice was the guidance counselor for a local high school.

"Brutal," she declared. "Kids these days and their cell phones, no good common sense."

I laughed and we wandered back over to Emmett and Jake's group. Emmett was in the midst of another story.

"...And you should have seen my brother, he was Rudolph red in the face, chasing after me with his hockey stick. I have never run so fast in my whole life. I have to have broke a state track record right there."

"Must have been some truly terrible stuff you put in his skates," Jake chuckled.

Emmett wagged his eyebrows. "My own special blend," he whispered conspiratorially. The group groaned.

"God Emmett, you are disgusting," Alice declared, shaking her head. "How Edward and I are related to you I will never know."

Emmett just laughed and turned to me. "The curse of the middle child is strong in me, apparently," he joked.

I shook my head and smiled. "So there were three of you?"

"Edward, me and then little pixie over there," Emmett answered. "I'd almost feel sorry for her, growing up with two older brothers, if I didn't already know that she can get into twice as much trouble as the two of us."

Alice rolled her eyes but the group laughed again. "Emmett why do you always have to embarrass me in front of new people? Keep telling stories about Edward because he's not here to defend himself," she complained.

"Does he live in Philadelphia, too?" Jake asked.

Alice shook her head no but it was Emmett who spoke up. "As you might have already guessed from the hockey skate story, my brother is a little more athletically blessed than I am. He lives in DC and plays right-wing for the Washington Capitals."

Alice snorted a laugh but I was looking at Jake. His eyes had narrowed at the mention of professional sports but I could see he was curious. Professional athletes were a check in the no column for obvious reasons. Jake opened his mouth to say something, but someone else in the circle was already asking questions about Edward.

"That must be really helpful for you, Emmett, if your brother plays professional sports," said Jessica, a mousy blonde who lived a couple doors down the hall from Jake and I.

Emmett laughed. "If you met Edward you would know it isn't exactly helpful. He doesn't embrace his fame with open arms. Camera shy."

Jake looked at me and rolled his eyes. We had serious doubts about professional athletes being shy. The conversation shifted from Edward to our resident hockey team, the Philadelphia Flyers, who were supposed to play the Capitals in two weeks.

"It's supposed to be a pretty good game," said Emmett. "I bet Edward could get us some tickets if I pester him enough."

I opened my mouth to say no but Alice was already nodding excitedly. "We can try and get seats up by the glass so the boys can practice for work. I haven't seen Edward in a couple of months and then we can go out after the game."

I looked helplessly at Jake, but he was nodding like it was a good idea. By the time I stopped trying to catch Jake's eye and opened my mouth to say I couldn't go, the plans were already made. Alice was chattering away about dinner and meeting before the game in two weeks and she was putting her number in Jake's phone. I plastered on a smile as I handed her my phone too, nodding yes when she said we should get lunch.

After that the roof party didn't hold much appeal for me and I climbed down the fire escape and went to bed early, wishing that the next two weeks would take an eternity to pass.

Instead of crawling by the next two weeks seemed to trip over each other in their haste. I was under deadline at work and spent a lot of hours writing a story I had been research for a couple of months, which made those days pass quickly. Before I knew it the day before the hockey game had arrived and I was scrambling for an excuse not to go. I was meeting Alice for lunch and had been texting her about how busy I was with work, hoping she would let me off the hook. But she did not give me a reprieve and just said it would be good to take a night off. As I waited for her, I wandered into a sports apparel store next to the restaurant. What did one wear to a hockey game anyway?

I found the hockey section and was surprised to find the jerseys were actually pretty comfortable. They were expensive, but I thought I could wear it around the house while I was writing. Of course, I had no idea which one to get. I liked the red home jerseys the best and finally settled on number twenty-one. I had no idea which number was Alice's brother because I hadn't been paying attention to last names at the roof party. Oh well, I thought, new sleep shirt for me.

I met Alice back at the restaurant and she looked at the bag from the sports store and laughed.

"I'm guessing new hockey apparel?"

I nodded my head and we placed our order.

"Come on, Bella it will be fun I promise. Just a little hockey and then out to the bars."

"I don't know Alice, I have so much stuff to do for work and -"

"You already bought a jersey. You're going. And who stays in to work on a Friday night anyway?"

I sighed and gave up the argument. Alice wouldn't relent and she was right, I had already bought a jersey. We chatted about meeting at the Wells Fargo Center and the different bars that Alice thought we could go to. By the time lunch was over, I even felt a little excited about the night out.

"So we'll meet outside the west entrance," Alice said, standing up. "Edward said that he would have the tickets waiting at will call so we can pick them up, get some drinks and find our seats."

"Sounds like you have thought of everything Alice," I laughed.

She tapped her right temple and leaned in to give me a hug. "Don't think too hard about tomorrow. We will have fun, I promise."

Jake and I got ready for the game after he got home from work on Friday. I had been working from home, trying to finish my story, so I had plenty of time to sit around and worry about going to the hockey game. Just like Alice warned me not to.

Jake was hogging the bathroom as usual so I got dressed in my bedroom. As I pulled the red number twenty-one jersey over my head, I took a deep breath. Tonight was supposed to be fun.

I turned and looked at myself in the mirror. I had left my long, brown hair down and it actually looked pretty good against the red of the jersey. I pulled it to the side to see CULLEN written in large, white letters above the number. All in all I was pleased with how the ensemble had worked out.

"Admiring yourself?"

I swung around to look at Jake, who was standing in my doorway. "Oh finally out of the bathroom, then?" I snarked as I passed him to brush my teeth. "Did you get your hair to lay just the way you like?"

Jake rolled his eyes and followed me. "If you took half as much time on your appearance as I do on mine, you wouldn't sit around the apartment on Friday nights watching Say Yes to the Dress," he said.

"Hey! I like Randy, he gets me."

"Whatever you weirdo," he said, rolling his eyes again. "Now let's get you out of the house for, like, the first Friday in a month."

I laughed as I grabbed my purse and a coat from the closet. He was probably right. As a rule I usually didn't date, but it's not like the guys were beating down my door either. I was quite content after Seattle to not date at all and Jake respected that. Of course, that didn't stop him from ribbing me every chance he got.

As we walked to the Girard station to catch the Market-Frankfort subway line, Jake was practically bouncing with excitement. I knew that he liked hockey, but I hadn't realized how much he avoided talking about sports around me. Always fussing like a mother hen, he was.

I had told Jake that Alice wanted to meet at the west entrance and he texted her to let her know we were on our way. The whole subway ride and the short walk to the Broad Street line, Jake yammered on about the Philadelphia Flyers players. He seemed particularly keen on someone named Chris Vandevelde, but I tuned him out before he started reciting player stats. I was trying to tamp down on the rising mix on anticipation and panic that was steadily growing inside me.

I almost missed our stop for the Wells Fargo Center because I was concentrating so hard on relaxing that Jake had to poke me several times in the arm.

"Up and at 'em, Swan. It is just a tiny little hockey match. I assure you that nothing life changing will happen at this game, you just need to relax. Have some fun!"

I smiled at him and we exited the train. As we neared the stadium I could make out Emmett standing a half a head taller than everyone else around him. I heard Alice before I saw her.

"Bella! Jake! I am so glad you guys could make it!" she bounced as she gave us both a hug. "Emmett already picked up the tickets so we can go right to our seats. He says they're amazing!"

We made our way into the Wells Fargo Center and Alice and I went to find the seats while Jake and Emmett stopped to buy beers for the group. Alice seemed to know where she was going, so I just followed her. But she didn't stop until we got to the first row of seats, right up against the glass.

"Wow Emmett was right, these seats are actually the bomb dot com!"

I had to laugh because who actually says bomb dot com and it was a nice break from the tension I had been feeling. Stupid sports phobia. Alice smiled at me and then started pointing out various teammates of her brother's who were warming up on the ice.

"...and that is Jasper Whitlock, absolutely delicious defenseman. We're going to get married, he just doesn't know it yet."

I noticed that she was wearing his number twenty-eight jersey in the away white but it was actually pretty chilly by the ice, so I kept my jacket on.

"So have you ever met Jasper in real life?" I asked, as Jake and Emmett slid along the row with our beers. Jake was the only one out of the four of us wearing Flyers gear.

Alice nodded her head. "Edward and Jasper were actually on the same peewee hockey team when we were kids, but they ended up on different club teams and going to different colleges. I have known Jasper practically my whole life," she said with a dreamy look on her face.

"The last time he saw you, you were probably still wearing diapers," Emmett snorted. "When Jasper and Edward played peewee together Alice was two," he explained to Jake and I.

"Yes, thank you for that Emmett. I'm sure I made a lasting impression," she snipped as she followed Jasper on the ice with her eyes. "Oh look there's Edward," she pointed at a blur that skated past us. "Apparently we get to go meet him in the locker room after the game."

Hockey, as it turned out, was pretty fun. Sitting so close to the glass gave us a really great view of the action on the ice and I forgot to be nervous about the meet and greet afterwards. Hockey, I learned, was also one of the most violent sports, second only to rugby. Players kept getting smashed against the glass in front of us and then had to go spend time in the penalty box.

It was toward the end of the game that the real excitement started. Edward had tried to make a shot that would put the Capitals ahead and had obviously fouled. But the referee hadn't seen it so Edward ripped off his helmet and was yelling at the ref and the other player, gesturing widely. He must have said something bad to the other player because the guy hauled back and punched him in the face.

"Oh my God," Jake crowed. "He just punched him!"

It turned into an all out brawl on the ice, with players from both teams rushing into the fight from all corners. It was a full five minutes before the officials got the game under control, pulling apart Edward and the Flyers player. Blood was streaming down Edward's white jersey from his nose and his face had turned Rudolph red, as Emmett had described at our roof party. His white, number twenty-one jersey, I realized with a start. In the commotion of the game I hadn't been able to get a good look at him as he skated by, but now it was obvious who Cullen was. He was Edward Cullen.

Emmett was yelling obscenities at the ref and Alice was standing trying to get a better look at her brother.

"Damn, I think that guy broke his nose again," Alice sighed, sitting down.

"Again?"

"He's broken it at least twice," Alice answered me matter-of-factly. "Once when he was younger and again when he first started playing professionally."

I nodded as if this was normal and we settled to watch Edward's penalty shot. He made it, putting the Capitals ahead by one point.

"They'll win," Alice declared, standing up. "Let's make our way to the locker room now so it doesn't take ten years."

We headed to the locker rooms with about a minute left on the clock in the game. Emmett greeted a few photographers who were hanging around and brought Jake over to introduce him. I lingered by Alice who was also looking around, probably for Jasper. Although the stadium had been chilly, the locker rooms were stifling. I unbuttoned my jacket, knowing Alice was too preoccupied to comment on my choice of jersey. But it still wasn't enough.

"God it's hot in here!" I exclaimed, fanning myself.

Alice just nodded absentmindedly, still looking around. From far away we heard the final buzzer of the game and looked up at the various TVs to see that Alice had been right and the Capitals had won.

"It's about to get a lot hotter," Alice joked, smirking at me. Already we could hear players trooping down the ramp to the locker room. Yikes.

I moved back to stand against the wall as the floodgates opened. Huge, sweaty men streamed through the hallway, carrying skates and helmets. I lost sight of Alice in the fray and had to wait until the players had passed before I caught sight of her again. She was talking to a tall man with light hair that I assumed was her brother. I hadn't seen him up close so I wasn't sure exactly what he looked like. He also had changed his shirt because there wasn't any blood on this new one.

I relented and took off my jacket as the temperature climbed even further with the team's entrance. I would just have to face Alice's ribbing. I walked over and stood by them, waiting for her to introduce me.

"...Oh and this is my friend Bella, her roommate works with Emmett."

I shook Edward's hand and smiled. "Nice to meet you, Edward."

He surprised me by laughing and shaking his head. "No, I'm not Edward," he said, smiling. "I can see why you would think that, though. This is his jacket." He pointed at the long Capitals jacket he wore with the number twenty-one on it. "He's with one of the trainers getting his face looked at. Probable broken nose."

"Bella, this is Jasper," Alice explained.

I laughed at myself and shook his hand again. He and Alice were discussing people from home and were just starting to talk about plans for after the game, when Jasper's eyes shifted to someone behind me.

"And here he is, the man of the hour," said Jasper.

I turned around but came face to chest with whoever was standing behind me. His shirt was spotted with blood and I had to look up to see his face, which was also streaked with red.

"God Cullen, you could have cleaned up a little bit or something," Jasper complained.

Edward raised a bloodstained towel to scrub at his face and smirked down at me.

"Nice jersey."


End file.
